Dina Smith, right, poses March 26 with her kids, from left, Bentley Hill, 18; Davon Hill, 14; Evelyn Smith, 23; and Shaun Smith, 20, in the living room of their Cincinnati home.

Written by

Dan Horn
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Dina Smith sits down at the kitchen table with a small stack of bills every two weeks and asks herself the same question.

"What needs to be taken care of right this second?"

Her twice-monthly paycheck of about $350 means her options are usually limited to paying utilities and restocking a near-empty refrigerator. She'll put off repairs to her broken-down 2001 Saturn - again - and try to find a few dollars for bus fare instead. ...